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Job Impermanence, or: Mantra at a Moment's Notice

I was let go from my job last night, effective immediately. Equipped with a new mantra I had developed for times of personal crisis, I was able to distance myself from the initial shock of finding out that I was no longer employed and thus not have a complete meltdown. Instead, I strolled out of the office internally repeating my personal mantra “who cares?”

To have the rug yanked from beneath you, especially when that rug allowed you to financially sustain your existence on this earthly plane, is startling. People react differently when they are startled. I myself have 'legit rage' as a default setting in response to fear. Anger is a viscerally physiological emotion. Your face gets hot, your hands might shake, your heart pounds. Before the stress hormones surge through your bloodstream, though, there is a narrow window of opportunity where you can stave off such a deluge. All it takes is a breath. For me, that space is produced when I actually ask myself 'who cares?' As a philosophy, or a mantra, 'who cares' can seem flippant or dismissive. But it doesn't need to be if you are really asking yourself who actually cares. Any amount of actually looking at reality in the present moment can give you that extra second before the anxiety dominos start their breathless race to the finish line. Sometimes when you check in with yourself like that you find out that yes, you do care! It's just that one second of space that can mean the difference between that bodily panic and the ability to just roll with it.

Ahhh that feeling of having the rug pulled out from under you. It seems there has been a lot of that going on this week, with a few people I know. It is tough. Sorry to hear about your job loss, it is temporary don't attach or hold onto that anger. Everytime you feel it coming on get back to your unborn awareness. Good luck.